Have you flown economy class lately on a deadhead that exceeded 5 scheduled block hours? How about on a deadhead with 10 or more scheduled block hours?
Have you noticed that when a higher class of service is authorized for your trip the Company delays and purchases your ticket much later, which oftentimes causes you to be waitlisted for the higher-class ticket?
These are more examples of the games the Company plays with our quality of life. Efficiency gains for the Company always trump a pilot’s quality of life.
Due to Company shenanigans when booking our deadhead tickets, we are forced to spend a lot of our time—time for which we are not paid—searching for the correct class of service. All it would take is for the Company to do the right thing and book our deadheads early and at the correct class of service before the only available seats left to book are economy class. When a higher class of service is contractually mandated, the Company should simply purchase your deadhead tickets without delay.
Additionally, there would be no reason to waitlist us if the Company did not wait to list us in the first place.
Have you ever asked the Company why our deadheads are sometimes in economy instead of a higher class of service in accordance with the CBA? And then received the following response: “We do not chase class of service.”
This article poses many questions, but the biggest question we would like to ask you is this: Do you think the Company chases class of service downward to economy when booking our deadheads?
So do we.
